Happy Halloween

Team USA is typically easy to spot in their red, white and blue; but not on Halloween. Check out what these athletes say was their favorite costumes from the past. Hint: You wouldn’t recognize them.

Ross James, rower: “In the summer of 2008 I was on the Under 23 national rowing team with my twin brother [Grant]. Our coach couldn’t tell the difference between us so he told one of us to grow some facial hair. I lost the coin toss and grew a goatee. At the end of the summer I contemplated shaving, but was talked into keeping the beard because the Wisco rowers always grow beards for the Head of the Charles Regatta in the fall. Shortly after the Charles race is Halloween and since I had already endured a fuzzy face for so long, another week wouldn’t hurt. A few of my rowing buddies and I dressed up as Spartans from the movie 300 and I took the lead as King Leonidas sporting my four-month-old beard. I love Halloween and have had a lot of fun costumes in the past, but never one that took four months to make!”

Travis Stevens, judoka: “When I was seven I was a werewolf for Halloween. I had these gloves with claws, and fangs, and I had glued hair all over my face and wore a wig. I remember getting a lot of compliments on how well done it was. I thought it was the coolest costume ever. But I remember it most because I had glued the hair to my face so it was really painful to take off. That was my last Halloween costume.”

Elena Hight, snowboarder: “One of my favorite Halloween costumes was when I was about 16-years-old. I was Tinker Bell. My favorite part of the costume was the blow-up wings and light-up wand that I had!”

Arielle Martin, BMX cyclist: “Every Halloween for as long as I can remember — even up into high school — I wore various Little Mermaid costumes. Though once or twice I wore my full BMX uniform, helmet, goggles and all. I guess I never wanted to be anything but a mermaid or BMX racer.”

Curt Tomasevicz, bobsledder (at right): “When I was 7, I spent Halloween night trick-or-treating as a mummy. With a torn-up bed sheet and a couple dabs of fake blood, I had one of the coolest (and maybe cheapest) costumes of all my friends!”

Kayla Harrison, judoka: “My favorite costume growing up was when I was probably four or five-years-old. I dressed up as a cowgirl. I thought I was the real deal! I got these super shiny red boots and I never took them off. I literally slept in them!”

Jazmine Fenlator, bobsledder: “I can't remember ever having a store-bought Halloween costume. Since I can remember my mom took me to Rag Shop or Michael’s to look through the patterns and choose a costume for her to make me. I remember vividly wanting to be a farm animal when I was five-years-old and I chose to be a cow. It was the warmest costume ever. The fur looked so real and had a cutout for my face. The costume was eventually passed down to my younger sister to wear.”

Esther Lofgren, rower: "My favorite team Halloween costume was just after the 2009 ESPN Body Issue came out, featuring our teammate and close friend Susan Francia. Another close friend and teammate, Sarah Trowbridge, bought a bunch of nude-colored Spanx and girdles and dragged a dusty old wooden oar out of the back of the Princeton boathouse. All anyone had to say on Halloween was, ‘Is that Susan?’ to get Sarah to pose for her close-up!”